though seemingly innocent, can serve to impact populations negatively through indirect means. Though culls can and do serve a crucial role in the maintenance of several ecosystems’ health, the lucrative nature of these operations lends itself to mimicry by unofficial groups and/or groups which are not fully aware of the potential negative impact of their actions. This is especially true of big-game and highly marketable species. Such unofficial organizations can promote the hunting or collecting of wildlife for profit without participating in or being sanctioned by wildlife management authorities while mimicking organized operations to fool unwary tourists. Though not sanctioned by any authority, the fact that these operations are funded by tourists and fueled by wildlife classifies such illicit hunting activity as “wildlife tourism”. Direct impacts The impacts wildlife tourism will have on wildlife depends on the scale of tourist development and the behavior and resilience of wildlife to the presence of humans. When tourists activities occur during sensitive times of the life cycle (for example, during nesting season), and when they involve close approaches to wildlife for the purpose of identification or photography, the potential for disturbance is high. Not all species appear to be disturbed by tourists even within heavily visited areas. Disturbing breeding patterns The pressures of tourists searching out wildlife to photograph or hunt can adversely affect hunting and feeding patterns, and the breeding success of some species. Some may even have long-term implications for behavioral and ecological relationships. For example, an increase in boat traffic has disturbed the feeding of giant otters in Manú National Park, Peru. Further disturbance to wildlife occurs when tourist guides dig up turtle nests and chase swimming jaguars, tapirs, and otters to give clients better viewing opportunities. On the shores of Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe, the number of tourist boats and the noise generated has disrupted the feeding and drinking patterns of elephants and the black rhinoceros - it is feared that further increases in boat traffic will affect their reproductive success. The disturbance caused by human intervention may prevent species from their regular breeding and feeding activities. To avoid this, tourism activities are often restricted in breeding time of some species. Eravikulam National Park is an important habitat of the Nilgiri tahrs in the Western Ghats. In Rajamala, the tourism zone in the Eravikulam National Park, in breeding season of Nilgiri tahr, visitors are barred from entering the sanctuary